According to an article on MobiThinking.com,
“Mobile subscribers will surpass 5 billion in 2010 (that’s over 70 percent of the world population) and growing rapidly, led by China and India. Half a billion people accessed mobile Internet worldwide in 2009. Usage will double within five years as mobile overtakes the PC as the most popular way to get on the Web.”
Statistics like these make one realize that we’re living in an increasingly mobile world, despite the fact that most of us are using a desktop (or laptop) at work or at home on a daily basis.
While a mobile phone or a smartphone can be used for many different purposes aside from simply making calls, this recent study supports the popularity of the mobile web:
| How US mobile subscribers use their cell phones |
| Activity |
Jan 2010 |
Apr 2010 |
Increase |
| Sent text message to another phone |
63.5% |
64.6% |
1.1 |
| Used browser |
28.6% |
31.1% |
2.5 |
| Used downloaded apps |
26.7% |
29.8% |
3.1 |
| Played games |
21.7% |
22.4% |
0.7 |
| social networking |
17.1% |
19.9% |
2.8 |
| Listened to music |
12.8% |
13.8% |
1.0 |
| Numbers from: ComScore, June 2010 |
Via: mobiThinking |
Of course, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see this trend even without stats and supporting articles. You, your siblings, your kids, and even your grandkids probably have a mobile phone. As more web-enabled phones enter the marketplace, websites are providing a more user-friendly design to accommodate the growing mobile medium.
That’s why AAPG Web Team has put together a questionnaire that we would like for you to fill out. It’s short and to the point. We want to know what information from the AAPG website you would find useful while on the go. Look for it in your email inbox. We appreciate your input.
Meanwhile, for those of you who already embrace the mobile web, we have “mobile-enabled” all AAPG’s blogs: if you visit them from your mobile phone, you will get a mobile version of the blog. Desktop users will, of course, get the desktop version, but wait! What are those alien-looking three-eyed pixelated black splotches on the blogs’ homepages? These 2D-barcodes are called QR (Quick Responce) codes; they are very useful shortcuts to resources on the web. The QR code is designed for use by your mobile phone’s cameras, so you don’t have to type in the URL manually on your phone. You’ll need a barcode reader installed (see list below). I’ve included the blog codes below. Go ahead, try them out!
GEO-DC Blog
Learn! Education Blog
Student Outlook Blog
wwwUpdate Blog
Events Blog (Coming Soon!)
Many companies provide barcode readers that you can install on your mobile, and all of the following are compatible with this format:
Do let us know in the comments your thoughts and experiences with the mobile web. We’re looking forward to receiving your Mobile Web Questionnaires!